


Goodbye Winter

by spark_M



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Angst with a Happy Ending, Anxiety Attacks, Gen, Homophobia, Late Night Conversations, Light Angst, M/M, Trans Character, jisung is a babie, unsupportive parents
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-11
Updated: 2019-10-11
Packaged: 2020-12-09 00:49:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20986076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spark_M/pseuds/spark_M
Summary: Passing through the Ghost Town while trying to escape from the reality of his situation, Jisung would never have thought to find it not-so-deserted. What is it that made Changbin, the only resident, go there, and what is it that keeps him there? Changbin doesn’t like talking, but maybe Jisung will learn the story of the beautiful moonlight boy, and together, they’ll find a family of their own.





	Goodbye Winter

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt #26
> 
> Passing through the Ghost Town, A would never have thought to find it not-so-deserted. What is it that made B, the only resident, come here, and what is it that keeps him here? B doesn't like talking at all, but maybe waiting for midnight every night is enough.

When Jisung set out on his journey, he didn’t expect to find a deserted town with a broken clock tower and an aura which screamed “DO NOT ENTER!”

The “DO NOT ENTER!” aura might have also been a sign on the fence Jisung vaulted over in order to get in - but hey, since when did Jisung obey the rules?

As Jisung walked the seemingly deserted streets of the small village, he took everything in. All the houses were deserted, not a single light in any of them. Some of them looked in great need of restoring or at least some construction, but it seemed like they wouldn’t get that in the near future. It was a small village, only about thirty houses and one restaurant. As Jisung strolled the streets, he wondered why the village was abandoned. Was it because it was haunted? Maybe there had been an explosion and it was radioactive? Maybe there was a-

“What are you doing here?” A rough voice broke Jisung from his thoughts, startling him.

“-mother of Crist! What the heck man?! You don’t just scare people like that?!” he exclaimed.

Jisung turned to the man who startled him and shut his mouth as he saw the man.

“You didn’t answer my question,” the guy pressed on. Jisung didn’t respond because he was too busy observing the man in the pale moonlight. He had tired eyes, black hair and strong facial features. He was shorter than Jisung, which surprised him.

The dude made a noise in his throat as he continued to wait for Jisung to answer his question and stop staring at him.

“Oh, yeah! I’m sorry. I’m Jisung! What’s your name?” 

“Why are you here?” the guy said in a way that sounded like he was whining.

“Well, _ stranger _ ,” Jisung exaggerated the word and waved a hand around. “Why are _ you _here? And what’s your name? If I’m gonna tell you about myself I should at least know your name shouldn’t I?” He had a smirk on his face and an eyebrow raised as he awaited a response.

“Changbin,” the guy said in a small voice, almost like he didn't want Jisung to hear.

Jisung smiled to himself as he repeated the name in his head. He liked the ring of it.

“Well, Changbin, I’m here because I don’t have a place to go. What about you?” Jisung’s smile and cheerful tone didn’t falter as he said those words. Changbin had been the first person Jisung had spoken to since he didn’t feel like he had a place to call home anymore, and truth be told, Jisung always had a habit of sheltering himself and not letting people see the whole picture. What can he say? Old habits die hard.

The stranger - Changbin tilted his head in a way that encouraged Jisung to continue. However, Jisung kept quiet and awaited his next words.

The expected words never left Changbin’s lips since he promptly turned on his heels and started calmly walking away from the blue haired boy.

“Hey! Where are you going? Come back!”

  
  
  
  


After Jisung caught up to Changbin and he started asking many, _ many _questions and Changbin’s silence still remained, Jisung decided that he was just going to stop asking questions but keep following him. Changbin didn’t seem like he was uncomfortable, he didn’t tell Jisung to go away or shout at him so Jisung counted that as a win.

They suddenly stopped in front of a house that was in better condition than all the other ones they had seen in their little walk.

Changbin went inside the house while Jisung remained outside, staring through the door. Suddenly a cold gust of wind swept the area and Jisung shivered. He hadn’t realized how cold it was until this very moment. Even though spring was approaching, the winter was still hanging on with its claws and the nights hadn’t gotten any warmer.

Changbin looked back to the door and saw that the shivering boy hadn’t entered. With a shake of his head and a gesture motioning him to come inside, he turned back to the heater he had been trying to get started. The only source of light in the room was the moonlight coming from the open door and windows.

“So, do you live here?” Jisung questioned with a small voice, looking around the small room. Right after his question, he heard the heater turn on and got started by the sound. 

After smiling at his accomplishment, Changbin turned to Jisung and shook his head.

“Cool. Uh. So why do you come here then? Hiding from something?” 

Chanbin’s slight smile got pulled down unto a frown and a small pout. It was honestly adorable, but Jisung was busy worrying too much about overstepping his boundaries to think about that. Changbin shook his head from side to side, averting his gaze.

“Sorry I asked, I tend to not think before I speak. Of course you wouldn’t want to tell me, I understand. We’re basically strangers!” Jisung rambled on but stopped when he saw Changbin’s smile returning back to his face in a smaller form. Jisung _ had _to smile back at that. Who wouldn’t?

“Are you going to stay?” Changbin asked Jisung. 

Jisung wasn’t expecting the smaller boy to speak, so after he got over his momentary shock, he thought about his situation.

He came here in the first place because he wanted to escape from his parents. For the first time in his life, Jisung had felt scared and unsafe in his home. Him and his parents had always been close, they had always made him feel safe. Seeing the disappointment on their faces and harsh words screamed at him, he had been utterly terrified and overwhelmed and escaped with a hope to feel safe, to fund some security, at least for a little while. 

The whole reason as to why they had reacted the way they did was simply because Jisung had told them that he wasn’t attracted to women. Jisung had told them that he was gay after dessert, when the athmosphere was light and filled with jokes. He had been waiting for them to him they’d love him no matter what, for them to hug him, for them to joke around like they always did. But instead, he was met with icy stares and disbelief - the shouting came a moment later, words he never wanted to hear again.

Even though going back to his house was the last thing he wanted to do, Jisung knew that it would be best if he did. His parents would still be worried, even if they hated him now. A quick glance at his watch told him that it was 11:57 PM already, he had left at around ten and wandered about in the streets before coming to this place. He left his phone in the house and left with a slamming door, red eyes, and stifling sobs.

Jisung finally made up his mind and murmured a quiet, “A little bit, if that’s okay,” to the boy. Changbin gave him a small smile and turned to look out the window. After a couple more minutes of them looking at the night sky, Changbin spoke up.

“What’s your story?” he asked, comfortable with talking for the first time since Jisung had met him.

Jisung shrugged and put his head on his knees that were drawn to his chest. He wasn’t about to spill his secrets and life to a guy he met twenty minutes ago.

Changbin seemed to get the message and turned his head back to the stars. Jisung could tell that he was thinking deeply about something. It almost seemed like there were more thoughts running through his head than the amount of stars in the sky. 

Except for shifting their positions, shivers and coughs here and there, they didn’t speak, they simply just enjoyed each other’s company.

“I come here to think.” Changbin said, not looking away from the stars. It was an invitation for Jisung to offer a small piece of information about himself as well. Jisung softly smiled at the short boy’s antics before offering a fact of his own.

“I came here to escape.”

Jisung continued to look at the stars even when he felt Changbin’s gaze on him. He looked at the stars and tried to figure out what to do with his home life with his parents, with the boy sitting next to him.

Without either of them noticing, the clock ticked even farther into the late hours and Jisung knew that needed to go back. He stood up and brushed away the dirt on his pants from sitting on the floor.

“Will I see you again?” Jisung asked the boy who was still seated on the floor, eyes shining and hopeful.

The boy gave him a smile and a nod, and that was enough for Jisung to decide to come back to the small house the next day and hopefully even more days to come.

  
  


Jisung was so afraid to enter his house. It was supposed to be his happy space, a safe environment filled with love and affection but it felt like that was the furthest thing away from it. If it were a couple hours ago, he’d stroll into his house, kiss his mother on the cheek and run upstairs smiling to his father’s study. But now, Jisung gulped and took a deep breath before ringing the doorbell. He anxiously tapped his foot against the ground and wondered if his parents would be cruel enough to leave him outside in the cold. Well, if that happened to be the case he could go back to Changbin - which actually seemed like a pretty good idea. 

The sound of the door being unlocked made Jisung’s heart race as he prepared himself for the worst.

“Where were you?” His dad questioned him. There was no emotion in his voice, no worry, no sadness, no anger, _ nothing _. Jisung didn't know if he should be glad or sad.

“I took a walk.” was his response. His dad sighed and let him in to the house, not saying another word. Jisung didn't miss the look of pure disappointment his dad threw at him. He also didn't miss how red his mother’s eyes were, and how those eyes that once looked at him with love now looked at him with disgust and, once again, disappointment. He felt his eyesight getting blurry from the tears which were about to flood his eyes so with one last look at his now broken family, he raced upstairs to his room and closed the door, bursting into tears and sobbing his heart out until the sun shone softly and peeked behind Jisung’s curtains.

It hurt so much, getting such cold reactions from the two people who were supposed to be his world. Jisung wondered if they’d even care at all if he were to disappear - not for a short time, like what happened in the past hours, but for good. Would they care if their _ disgrace of a son _ ran away to a place they didn’t know? Would they care if he disappeared, never spoke to them again? Would they care if he ended up dead on the side of a street? 

Would they care?

  
  
  
  


With all the thinking and crying he had been doing, Jisung hadn’t realized how many hours spent were on fretting over what had happened. He could see light peeking through his curtains and he realized that the sun was making an appearance.

Jisung wiped his tears away and raised himself up in shaky legs in order to go to the window. He threw open the curtains and the window, allowing the fresh air and sunlight to enter his room. Jisung watched the sunrise in peace for a couple moments, completely entranced. It almost seemed like the sun was comforting Jisung, shining softly and warmly. If that were the case, the sun would be the only thing left that still cared about Jisung. That thought made him close his eyes and a fresh batch of tears to come out of his eyes. His parents didn’t love or care about him anymore, he never made friends ever since they moved back to Seoul, he wasn’t close enough to _ anyone _ to be remembered. He wondered if his parents could hear him sobbing all night long. If they had heard it, they hadn’t cared enough to talk to him. He was alone, he was completely alone. The same thought circulated in his head, suffocating him. 

_ Nobody wants you, you’re alone. _

_ You’re alone _

YOU’RE ALONE

YOU’RE ALONE YOU’RE ALONE Y_ OU’RE ALONE YOU’REALONEYOU’REALONEYO- _

Jisung’s breathing started picking up and he knew he had to calm himself down so that he wouldn’t experience another full on anxiety attack. He started looking around the room and named the colors he could see, then he moved on to the breathing exercises his councilor in his old school had taught him and he eventually calmed down. 

He continued to look out to the sun and the ocean when he remembered the boy at the abandoned village. Would he care about Jisung if he disappeared? Probably not, since they only met once, and didn’t even have a proper conversation. Changbin would probably just remember him as the weirdo that showed up one night. Jisung hoped that they would grow to be friends, he was so tired of not having someone to confide in, someone to have fun with, someone to love and someone to love him back. Call him desperate, but Jisung was going to cling onto his hope at friendship.

With that thought in mind, Jisung made a promise to the sun. He, Han Jisung, was going to find someone who’d care. He, Han Jisung, was going to make a friend.

And that friend was going to be Changbin, the handsome boy he met under the moonlight.

Jisung didn’t try to go to sleep, he would have to wake up in a couple hours to go to school anyways, so he just got dressed and did his homework due for the day like nothing happened. He pretended like nothing happened the day before, and he had just pulled another all-nighter for a project he procrastinated on. He finished his homework and checked the time, he gathered his supplies and packed up before leaving for school. He had only one more year to go, then he’d be free from this hell. He would maybe go to university, or he’d move far far away and work small jobs to pay for his living. That sounded so much better than the place he was in now, _ anything _sounded better than the situation he was in now.

As he walked into his school and to his locker, Jisung realised how _ tired _he really was. Taking as he had cried all night and hadn’t slept - he wasn’t that good with his sleep schedule anyway, he had slept at about four AM two days prior due to him binge watching Doctor Who and not thinking about the consequences. Now Jisung wasn’t sure if he’d be able to get through the day without falling asleep in one of his classes. He considered skipping school entirely but eventually decided against it - his parents didn’t need another reason to be disappointed at him, after getting a call from his school asking where he was.

So he went to his classes, head filled with toxic thoughts of self hatred and more. Jisung couldn’t get himself to focus on what his teachers were saying, he was much too tired to focus and too busy thinking. At lunch, he sat at his usual table, the smallest one in the cafeteria which only he would sit at, occasionally joined by other loners, but he’d never attempt to talk to them, too afraid of rejection and judgment. So he sat at the table, ate his lunch and went to his next class. Not sure if he wanted the school day to be over, or wanting it to go on forever so he wouldn’t have to go home and be met with the icy coldness from his parents.

  
  
  


Jisung arrived at his house, calling out for his parents when he realized that his mom wasn’t watching TV in the living room and his father’s work room door wasn’t slightly ajar like it was when he was working in it. After getting no response, he headed to the kitchen to get himself a glass of water. As he was chugging from his glass, he saw an orange post-it on the fridge and approached it after setting his glass down.

_ “We went to Ms. Kim’s for dinner and drinks. We’ll be back at around 2 AM.” _

His parents had asked if he had wanted to come with a couple days prior, and he had answered with a definite no. He was glad that he wouldn’t be forced to make awkward conversation with his parents and their friends. That meant he would now have around seven hours to himself.

Jisung’s happiness about being alone in the house crashed down as soon as he sat down on the same chair he had sat at the day before and had come clean to his parents. He started overthinking again, and he _ really _ didn’t want to have another anxiety attack, so he decided to make up for his loss of sleep and take a nap in his room.

It wasn’t easy to sleep, not with all the thoughts circulating in his head. But the soft music he had put on lulled him to sleep, and the last thought in his head was how mesmerizing the piano sounds were, how grounding the drums were, how the lyrics seemed like they were written just for him.

_ Love, love the stars _

_ Love, love the moon. _

  
  


When Jisung woke up from his nap, it was dark outside and the half shaped moon was shining with all its glory. His first thought was how pretty the sky looked through his bedroom window. But Jisung knew a place that made the stars sparkle more, made the moon shine more brightly. It was the village with the moonlight boy, Changbin. 

Jisung felt for his phone on his bedside table. After struggling to find it for a couple moments, he found it on the floor. He must have knocked it over in his sleep. The battery was dead, hence why the music had stopped. With a sigh, he got up to find his charger and plugged it in after finding it. When his phone turned on, he quickly put his playlist on again. The song that he fell asleep to echoed in his room again and he found comfort in the familiarity, humming along to the gentle melody.

The clock showed that the time was ten pm, meaning that he slept for about five hours. He knew that he wouldn’t be able to sleep again, but he had a pretty good idea on how he could spend those hours.

He threw on an oversized hoodie, a beanie and put on his shoes, with that he was out the door, headed for the place he had found the day prior. His steps could be heard in the street, being the only source of sound. Almost in the blink of an eye, Jisung saw that he was now at the fence with the familiar “DO NOT ENTER!” sign. He grinned to himself, remembered how he had almost fallen flat on his face while trying to jump over the fence, and his awe when he had seen the village. With that silly smile on his face, he made his way to the small house, thinking about possible conversations with the special boy who was inside.

Changbin wasn’t in the little house when Jisung arrived there, but Jisung knew that he would show up eventually. He had told him that they’d see each other again, and he wouldn’t have lied, right?

So Jisung waited.

And waited.

And waited.

When the clock hit eleven pm, Jisung realised that the moonlight boy might have lied. With a frown on his face, he left the house and started walking back. 

On his way back to the fence, his brain filled with thoughts. Did Changbin not want to see him? Was he annoyed by him? Did something happen to him?

What snapped him back to reality and away from his thoughts was the sound of someone crying, and another person’s soft murmuring of “Everything is going to be okay.”

Jisung considered just walking away, it wasn’t any of his business after all. But he was also curious. Could it be Changbin? Was it someone else? Who else knew of this little abandoned village other than him and Changbin?

With tentative steps, he followed the sound of the soft sobs and reassuring words. The person cried in such a heart wrenching way, it made Jisung want to comfort them. When he turned the corner from another house, he saw two boys around his age sitting on the steps, hugging each other, clutching each other’s shirts like they were going to disappear any minute. Neither of them looked like Changbin. Jisung wasn’t sure whether to be glad he wasn’t the one crying or be even more anxious since he still didn’t know where he was. 

Jisung purposely stepped on the ground with more force in order to get their attention. Upon hearing his heavy combat boots making contact with the textured road, they pried away from each other, looking at Jisung expectedly.

“Hi, I’m Jisung.” He said with a small smile, and raised his hand in a small wawe.

The two boys looked at each other, and the blonde reached over to hold the crying boy’s hand, still not tearing his gaze away from Jisung. 

Jisung realized that neither of them had any intention of speaking, so he awkwardly cleared his throat and spoke again.

“Are you guys ok? I heard you crying, and couldn’t help but be curious. Even more since this place is deserted.” That last part was partially a lie, since Changbin still occupied one of the houses.

The blonde one spoke up, his voice firm.

“None of your business. But we can leave if needed.” His grip on the other boy tightened, and he stood up, the crying boy following in suit.

“No no it’s ok! I was just a bit shocked to see someone, that’s all. I was just about to leave anyway.” He spoke in a frantic tone. Making them uncomfortable was the last thing Jisung wanted to do. They all stopped and looked at each other in search of a decision on what to do.

“Jisung?”

His name spoken by the person he had waited to see brought the bright smile back to Jisung’s face.

“Changbin! Hi!” Jisung turned to him and gave another one of his small waves.

“Who is this?” asked the blonde.

“He’s the only other person who comes here.”

“I thought you said this place was deserted?” The guys says and cocks an eyebrow.

“Well I guess _ technically _it isn’t.” 

The blond guys sighed and turned to the guy who has stopped crying.

“You wanna go back?” He asked with a tone that was very different from the one he had been speaking to Jisung with.

“No.” The guy said, his voice barely audible.

Changbin looked at each of them for a second, then made eye contact with Jisung. He held it for a second before he beckoned them to follow him with a wave of his hand.

Jisung didn’t think twice before following him. However that wasn’t the case for the other two. They probably thought Changbin was going to lure them in to murder them or something. Upon realizing this, Jisung turned back to them and spoke.

“We’re not going to kidnap you or anything. It’s just that there’s a house with heating and we’re going there. Feel free to join or not. Your decision.” 

He shot them a small smile before slightly jogging to catch up with Changbin.

This was going to be an interesting night.

  
  
  


After they sat and talked around the small heater, Jisung learned a lot about the two newcomers.

He learnt that the blonde one was named Chan, and the crying boy’s name was Yugyeom. He learned basic things like their age, where they’re from and their hobbies. He learnt that they were in their first year of university, and had met in their music composition class. After learning the fact, they had talked about music for the next half an hour, which artists they liked, what music software they used to compose and even more. Little by little, they had opened up to each other. 

Not once did Jisung ask about why Yugyeom had been crying. He figured that he needed a distraction, and to not think about it.

On the other hand, Changbin _ hadn’t _thought about that, and while they were talking about whether DEAN or Crush was better, he had blurted out the question.

Yugyeom looked very taken aback, and not so secretly shifted himself to hide behind Chan. After seeing it happen, Jisung was quick to jump in and reassure them.

“You don’t have to tell us of course. We can just keep on talking about DEAN and how _ clearly _, he is better than Crush,” he said with an attempt to lighten the mood. It worked slightly, since Yugyeom came out of hiding behind Chan, but didn’t let go of his hand.

He sighed deeply and looked at Chan before speaking. It was almost like they had a silent conversation, and it ended with Chan nodding his head and giving him a small smile.

“We were at a party and some assholes decided to mess with us and call us names. One of them turned out to be a guy I went to high school with and said he would tell my mom that-th-that-” Yugyeom stammered and looked at Chan with tear filled eyes. Chan immediately wrapped his arms around him and whispered reassurances in his ear. After a couple moments of reassuring the once again crying boy, Chan turned to them and told them what happened.

“A guy he went to high school with saw us kissing and decided to gang up on us with this asshole friends. They threathened to tell Yugyeom’s family that their son was a ‘faggot.’” Chan took a breath to calm himself and looked down at Yugyeom again. “They kept bothering us until we left.”

Chan looked at them with eyes that seemed like they were challenging them to say something bad, challenging them to make his Yugyeom cry again.

“Ah, the good old homophobia I see. Been there, done that.” Jisung said with an empathetic tone, making eye contact with Yugyeom in an attempt to show him that he meant no harm.

All eyes around the heater turned to him and he simply shrugged, feeling uncomfortable.

“I came out to my family yesterday, they didn’t take it too well.” Jisung gave a brief explanation. He looked to Changbin, wanting to see his reaction.

Changbin simply gave him a reassuring smile and reached over to squeeze his shoulder. That simple action meant a lot to Jisung that it probably should have, but he found himself very happy nonetheless. It was the first comfort he had gotten, since he hadn’t told anyone but his parents.

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Chan said with a sympathetic tone, “My parents were pretty accepting when I came out to them, so I didn’t struggle that much. I can only imagine what you’re feeling.” He finished off and reached over to squeeze Jisung’s hand. Jisung found comfort in the small touch like he did with Changbin and squeezed his hand back.

“I mean, it definitely could have gone worse. I guess I need to talk with them again because I kinda stormed off after doing it and haven’t really spoken to them since.” Jisung said while scratching his neck and shifting his eyes around the room nervously. He hoped that by his body language the others would drop the subject and they seemed to take the hint and backed off. There was a silence. Not uncomfortable, but not yet comforting.

Shockingly, it was Changbin who spoke next.

“You’re all welcome to come here whenever it’s too hard.” The soft words were accompanied with an even softer smile, and he made eye contact with all of them, almost like he was trying so show that he was being genuine.

He was met with a chorus of “thanks” and exchanged smiles.

Somehow, all of them knew that it wouldn’t be the last night they would spend together.

  
  


The next day, Jisung walked into school with a smile on his face, the soft melody of Dean’s “Half Moon” reminding him of all that had happened the previous night. He had met new people, and they had been so nice and amazing. Jisung had a good feeling about the upcoming times, and he hoped his feelings were true.

Just as he was closing his locker after taking his English notebook out, he spotted two figures relatively close to him whispering furiously to each other and stealing small glances at him. It made him extremely self conscious - did he have something on his face? Was there a rumour about him? Maybe everything with his parents had been found out somehow-

“Hmpf!” 

While he was busy thinking, he hadn’t noticed that one of the boys -the taller one, had pushed the younger looking one onto him, and the boy had stumbled into him as a result. Without thinking, he instinctively put his arms on the boy’s arms to stabilize him.

“You ok?” He asked the boy, pulling his hands off his arms.

“Yeah. Sorry about that” the boy turned around and looked at his friend who made a gesture for him to hurry up. 

“Uhm, I was wondering, we-uh started a GSA. And I saw your pin so I wanted to ask. Would you want to maybe join?” 

After hearing it, Jisung looked back at his backpack with about thirty pins on it, spotting the one that had the peace sign with a rainbow almost instantly, where it was just above the smaller pocket.

The boy looked at him expectantly, almost like he was waiting for Jisung to shout at him.

“I’d love to. What time?” Jisung said and gave the nervous boy a small smile. He hoped that this boy would be comfortable with him, he seemed like a sweet kid.

“Lunch time in room 12 today!” He said, his wide smile showing his braces. Jisung fought the urge to compliment his sweet smile.

At that moment, the bell rang that signaled them to go to their class. They gave exchanged another set of smiles and bid each other goodbye. Jisung made sure to send a small smile to the boy who had pushed the smaller boy. 

Maybe his good feeling would let to something after all.

  
  


For the rest of his classes, he kept thinking about those two boys and their GSA club. He wondered if it was just the two of them or if there would be more people, he wondered if they’d like him. Would he be too awkward to fit in? Should he just not go?

Even though his mind was full of worries, he still made his way to room 12 after the lunch bell rang. When he was outside the door, he took a deep breath and remembered his promise to himself. 

He stepped inside the room and was met with a chorus of four boys screaming at eachother. He recognized two of them as the ones in the hallway, but the other two were complete strangers to him. When they spotted him, they quieted down and looked at each other.

“Hello! Let’s all introduce each other shall we?” The tall one who had pushed the smaller one said. Jisung put his bag on the ground and sat on the table like the others were doing.

“I’ll start. I’m Hyunijn, I’m in year 12 and am a raging homosexual,” he finished off with a smile, a chorus of giggles erupting from the other boys at the last statement.

“Hi! It’s so nice that we could get this club started and I’m so glad to be here! I’m Jeongin and I’m in third year!” 

So that was the small boy’s name, the one who had asked him to join. He turned around and smiled his sunshine smiled at Jisung again, which made him feel just a bit more comfortable.

“I’m Seungmin, I’m in the same year as Hyunjin and Felix.” Seungmin spoke in a quieter tone compared to the chaos of screaming Jisung had walked in on. He was probably not that comfortable around people he didn’t know, Jisung thought to himself. He turned to the remaining boy who seemed a little nervous to introduce himself.

“My name is Felix and I’m from Australia.” He looked around nervously and was met with reassuring smiles from everyone.

“Oh, I know someone who’s from Australia. He goes to uni a couple blocks away, maybe you know him? His name is Chan,” Jisung asked. He had learned the day prior that Chan was Australia however moved to Seoul for high school.

“I don’t think so. I haven’t met another Aussie yet.” Felix looked up but didn’t stop fiddling with his fingers. Jisung noticed that his voice was deep and that he had freckles that suited his face. 

“Maybe I can bring you guys together sometime, would you like that?” Jisung asked with a smile on his lips. He had been doing that a lot these past couple days. Smiling.

“That would be awesome! I’ve been kinda homesick so it would be amazing.” The boy smiled at him, looking so utterly happy that it made Jisung smile back at him just as wide.

“Oh yeah, I didn’t introduce myself. I’m Jisung, I’m year 12 and I’m really excited to be here!”

  
  


Throughout the lunch break, they learned a lot about one another. Jisung learned that Seungmin and Jeongin liked to sing, that Felix and Hyunjin liked to dance and they had met in their dance classes they take outside of school. 

“We’re in the same grade but I don’t really see you around, Jisungie,” Hyunjin said while resting his chin on his hand. “You should eat lunch with us!”

“Ah,” Jisung said, he felt a bit insecure about his absence of a social life. But he was getting better, he had Changbin, Yugyeom and Chan, which was an improvement of a grand total of zero friends he had before. Now, Hyunjin, Seungmin, Felix and Jeongin wanted to befriend him too. How could he say no to that? “I guess I keep to myself more often. But I’d love to hang out with you guys more!” 

“Great! We’ll see you around then!” Felix said, and jumped down from his set on the table, moving to get his bang. Jisung had totally forgotten that the first bell signalling they should be on their way to class had rung, to wrapped up in Seungmin’s story about getting his first binder. 

After he bid goodbye to his new friends, he thought about all they talked in that small, stuffy room. He learned that Jeongin was ace and bi, that Hyunjin was gay - which, it had literally been the first sentence out of his mouth - Seungmin was trans, and Felix was questioning. Now that he thought about it, most of his new friends were queer. Maybe the universe was comforting him by making his path cross with queer kids after what happened with his parents. Maybe it was the universe’s way of apologizing. 

Whatever it was, Jisung would always be eternally grateful.

When Jisung came home that night, he didn’t expect to find strangers in his house along with his parents. After overcoming his initial shock of seeing people, he greeted them and sat next to the boy that looked around his age.

After the wave of “My God! Is this your son? Woah look at him, he’s so handsome,” by the (seemingly) mom and grandma - followed by another wave of squeezing his cheeks, he finally learned that they were the neighbours that moved to the house across from them today.

The family consisted of a woman in her 70’s, a woman in her late 40’s and a boy, around his age, if not a little older. He learned that the boy’s name was Minho, and that he_ wasn’t _going to go to the school Jisung went to. It made him feel bad for Minho a little, since if he were to go to Jisung’s school, at least he would have had Jisung himself who would show him around. But in a new school, he was basically alone.

After about 10 minutes of sitting through conversation and making small talk, Jisung’s mom told them to go upstairs to his room, since they looked bored. 

With a look of what seemed to be fear or at least slight discomfort towards his mother, Minho followed Jisung upstairs to his room. 

Once upstairs, Jisung left the door open on purpose to make Minho less afraid. He sat on his bed and patted the space next to him to signal Minho to sit down and decided to start the conversation.

“So, what do you like to do in your free time?”

Jisung found that Minho was really easy to talk to. After getting the conversation started about dancing, Minho had talked about his passion in it and Jisung had told him about his passion for music and literature in return. From there, they had talked about a whole lot more like classes, favorite books, favorite TV shows and more. Minho had made Jisung promise to binge watch Doctor Who together.

While they were all at the door and about to part, Minho gave Jisung a small hug which surprised him. However, he made sure to circle his arms around the taller boy and say a quick goodbye.

It wasn’t until Jisung was back in his room that he realized that it had been the first hug he had been given in a _ long _ time and that’s why he had been so pleased as he found comfort in Minho’s arms. His parents had never been to kin on skinship, and he hadn’t had any friends until like, a week ago. 

With the thought of 8 particular boys in his mind and a certain melody, Jisung fell asleep with a smile on his face.

  
  


Came and went Wednesday, Thursday and Friday which was filled with eating lunch with the GSA gays (as they called themselves), the afternoons were spent with Minho watching Doctor Who, talking about their passions or problems, and the nights were spent with his moonlight boys - he had switched from only calling Changbin moonlight boy to calling Yugyeom and Chan it too. Usually it was Yugyeom, Chan and Jisung himself speaking with Changbin listening intently and occasionally adding his own opinions. They would talk about everything from music to homophobia to university. Jisung felt happy.

But there was one thing missing, and he couldn’t put his finger on what it was.

He realized what it was when Felix asked him about whether or not he and Chan would meet. That’s what it had been missing.

Even though he was more than happy with his two separate friend groups, it would be pure bliss if he could be with all the people who made him smile at the same time.

With that thought in mind, he bid goodbye to Felix after telling him he’d arrange their meeting and took out his phone. He smiled when he saw the contact and hurriedly wrote a message. He had to write 7 more after all.

As the clock struck eight pm, Jisung impatiently made his way out of his house and into Minho’s. Minho’s grandma greeted him with a smile and an offer of homemade cookies, calling her grandson down in the meanwhile.

Minho came thundering down the stairs with a coat and scarf on and trapped Jisung in a tight hug. After returning the hug, Jisung told him that they should get going or else they would be late. It was one thing that Jisung had learned over the past days with Minho, he hated being late.

So, with a napkin full with about eighteen cookies from Minho’s grandma and a promise to keep themselves safe, they were on their way.

. . .

Just as they were nearing towards their destination, a small body barrelled onto his, and after a second Jisung realized that it was Jeongin giving him a hug. 

“Oh my god hyung this place looks so scary can we go hang somewhere else it’s nighttime what if we get kidnapped-” The small boy was talking at a pace that would make Zico proud, rambling on about every worry.

“Innie, Innie look at me.” Jisung cupped his face in his hands. Jeongin looked at him like a lost puppy and Jisung resisted the urge to coo. “ Nothing is going to happen, I come here everyday. The view is best at night and you won’t regret it, I promise.” Jeongin calmed down and nodded at his words. 

“Now, this is Minho. Everybody introduce yourselves!”

. . . 

Chan and Yugyeom were waiting at the entrance, hand in hand, Chan’s body leaning on Yugyeom’s. He looked really tired. Jisung noted it down on the back of his mind to ask him about it.

After the introductions, Yugyeom, Chan and Jisung helped the other ones jump the fence and get in. As Jisung found out from Yugyeom a couple nights prior, there was another entrance, however at the other side of the village, farther away from the house. That’s why Jisung continued to jump over the same one he had on the first day he had found the place. And maybe because it reminded him of that night, maybe because of the adrenaline when he almost fell over every time.

When Jisung didn’t fall over _ this time _however, he knew that it was going to be a good night. 

They made their way to the house, chatting on the way. All the others seemed comfortable with each other by now, which shocked Jisung, he hadn’t expected them to get along this great. Felix and Chan had immediately bonded, speaking in a thick accent that even Jisung himself couldn’t properly understand, even with years of goin

When they stopped at the house and went in, he finally saw his original moonlight boy, Changbin. He greeted them with a warm smile and mentioned everyone to sit down. He had opened up to Jisung more, speaking more often. Jisung still didn’t know a lot about him, but he was content with that, as long as he got to enjoy his company.

The rest of the night was spent talking, getting to know each other, looking at the stars and more. After Hyunjin’s suggestion to go on a walk, they walked in the town, looking at abandoned buildings, the moon and the sea at a distance. As they neared a clearing rid of all buildings, Seungmin started chasing Felix around, which led Chan to run after them too. Soon enough all of them were running around, laughing and in each other's arms, the ones who’d lost the chase being the ones held “captive,” pretending to be annoyed but enjoying the warmth of having someone around them.

At that very moment, where he was still panting and laughing, Jisung took everything in. He saw the people who had brought him happiness all together. They were all wrapped up in each other, even though they had met a mere couple hours ago, some of them were comfortable enough to be embracing each other. Maybe he was a little high on the adrenaline, maybe he was just the happiest he had been in a long time, but he realized. Moments like these were what life was worth living for. 

A warm breeze caressed his hair, the breeze that made Jisung shiver a week ago now made his chest feel warm. He felt Changbin’s arm around his shoulders, and thought to himself. When they were all laughing like this, together like this, they were one. They were one and they were happy.

Maybe his relationship with his family wouldn’t get better, maybe he would fail all his classes, maybe all his nightmares would come true. But for now, he knew that these people would be there with him.

Jisung looked up to the sky, the laughter of everyone, and the melody of a certain song in his ears. He thanked the moon for shining so bright that night, and he thanked the universe for bringing them together.

He knew that no matter what, he would be okay, if he had his eight stars who would never fail to bring a smile on his face.

_ Love, love the stars _

_ Love, love the moon. _

**Author's Note:**

> I hope that you enjoyed reading this! A lot of 3 am writing sessions and writing blocks later, I'm kinda proud of what I wrote. 
> 
> I couldn't have done this without my amazing beta, @hj_sungs. Thank you for helping me, fixing my mistakes and being an amazing beta in general <3 
> 
> Thank you to the SKZ fic fest for giving me this opportunity to be a part of this amazing festival.


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